Due to our practice room being demolished, we were forced to go to a commercial practice studio. Although the studio has bigger rooms, due to availability, we're in the smallest room. It's tiny (for us), & every surface is carpeted. It's as dead as hell, & the only realistic space that can take my drums, is boxed in, & more dead than the Dead Sea itself. Don't get me wrong, great people, great practice studio in terms of service, but that room is a sound killer.

Here's a clip of last night's practice. Ok, my kit could seriously do with a tune (I've had zero time this week), but that room, above any room I've ever experienced, just sucks the tone & life right out of my drums. It really affects my mood, & the pleasure I get from playing. Worse, it steers how I play - ack!

Looks like one of my vids (also shot very tight with the Q3 due to space restrictions).
Didn't sound all that bad to me (but yeah toms definitely a bit on the flat side). But what would an e-drummer know?

Looks like one of my vids (also shot very tight with the Q3 due to space restrictions).
Didn't sound all that bad to me (but yeah toms definitely a bit on the flat side). But what would an e-drummer know?

toms are more than a bit on the flat side, they're dead! no matter how you tune a drum in that room, it has no life. I swear I've never encountered a room like it (actually, it's more the size of a generous cupboard than a room).

Quote:

Originally Posted by PQleyR

Reminds me of the place in Reading where my band Sorcerer's Spell used to practice years ago. I would find myself hitting my snare twice as hard just to get the usual volume out of it!

Too true Ben, & not just volume, but everything. I never thought I'd find a room that can turn super resonant drums into boxes :(

I did a recording session last week at a studio here in Lincs with a room/hall that was about 30' wide by 40' ish long and 15' ceiling, the best sounding I've ever played in bar-none, bags of room to let the drums sing. I was in heaven! It's back to the pokey hole of a rehearsal studio on Monday, soul crushing.

In those kinds of rooms (broom cupboard studios) I can live with the effect they have on toms, but the effect they have on the snare...oh dear. No amount of tuning I've tried can get the snare sounding nice and as you said, it affects the way I play in a wholly negative way.

You get the excuse of "oh well, we're on a budget not a high flying London studio", which seems counter-intuitive to me, as it would actually be more cost-wise for them not to add all of the sound treatment junk that they put in. Yes I understand that in inner-cities there are neighbours, but when your rehearsal studio is on an industrial estate, c'mon!

It's funny Kev. None of the London studios I frequent are particularly high-flying but I've never had the problem of 'over-treatment'. In fact, we recently discovered a studio with a lovely rehearsal room. That new studio is two streets away from another one that we use that also has a great room.

The only problem is that the gear sometimes requires some 'problem-solving'.

Aha, not many muso's or people involved in that industry travel south from Lincoln unfortunatley, I think they see London as magical place where the studios are clad in gold. Brighton Electric has one of my favourite rooms, quite spacious and a sensible amount of treatment and good P.A. equipment.

We got ripped off recently by one studio - with a pathetic room and a bad PA. That was in Whitechapel and we won't be going back there. The two we use are in Willesden Green and quite good although the PA system in one is not ideal and the other one just isn't quite loud enough.

You can never quite win. Although the 'new' one has a Mapex Orion kit and some lovely cymbals available.

+1 ... the only few times we ever rented a practice/rehearsal studio when I lived in the UK was dead sounding, might be good for the neighborhood, but not to play with acoustic instruments, even when you speak with your mates it's sounds strange :)

Andy, I feel for you, but it's not that bad, I've heard worse than that, believe me...

... you're covering Child's Anthem? nice, I look forward to see and hear it in one of your "Fired Up" live clip :)

Due to our practice room being demolished, we were forced to go to a commercial practice studio. Although the studio has bigger rooms, due to availability, we're in the smallest room. It's tiny (for us), & every surface is carpeted. It's as dead as hell, & the only realistic space that can take my drums, is boxed in, & more dead than the Dead Sea itself. Don't get me wrong, great people, great practice studio in terms of service, but that room is a sound killer.

Here's a clip of last night's practice. Ok, my kit could seriously do with a tune (I've had zero time this week), but that room, above any room I've ever experienced, just sucks the tone & life right out of my drums. It really affects my mood, & the pleasure I get from playing. Worse, it steers how I play - ack!

When in this kind of acoustic I think it's good to accept it and resist the temptation to hit much harder. You just end up getting worn out and it still sounds lifeless.

It's not the kit volume that bothers me, it's the fact that my kit/any kit, sounds like you're hitting a sack of manure with a salmon!

Quote:

Originally Posted by K.Howden

Every commercial studio I've been to has been like this.
Kev

Agreed, most are dreadful, but this is somehow even more so. nice place, but oh man is it dead.

Quote:

Originally Posted by BacteriumFendYoke

Although the 'new' one has a Mapex Orion kit and some lovely cymbals available.

That doesn't count in this thread, as the rehearsal space is obviously vast (badges) ;) ;) ;)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mad About Drums

... you're covering Child's Anthem? nice, I look forward to see and hear it in one of your "Fired Up" live clip :)

yes, but that was a first "winging it" attempt. You'll see it in our shows once the bloody drummer has put the right grooves in, although I smell an Andy twist on the drum parts to this one. That'll piss off the purists (again :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZslim

Maybe it's those crappy drums you are playing.

Kidding, kidding, kidding :-)

yes, that's it. Damn, why didn't I think of that :) Actually, I tried the little "Cappuccino" kit in there last week, & that sounded like crap too. Obviously a Guru issue :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Angus Macinnes

Sounded pretty good but you could tell the room was eating the sound fast. I can see where that could be bothersome. Hope you get another place that is better in the future.

Thanks for chiming in :) Unfortunately, the rest of the guys are happy, so I'll just have to suck it up :(

Any easy way to introduce some hard surfaces back into the room? Maybe some 4x8 sheets of drywall, plywood, scrap wood from your factory? Just thinking maybe that would help. Wouldn't have to be anything permanently attached but something you could put up against the wall to re-introduce some natural room verb??

On another note is the Q3 the only thing you used for audio in that? Or were you running mics through a board then into the Q3

Haha, that is weird! I'm not sure if the tape made it worse or not, but I have to admit, that is about as dead a room as I've ever come across. I hope you can get into a more "music-friendly" space soon, Andy. Maybe they could use that room as a library.

Any easy way to introduce some hard surfaces back into the room? Maybe some 4x8 sheets of drywall, plywood, scrap wood from your factory? Just thinking maybe that would help. Wouldn't have to be anything permanently attached but something you could put up against the wall to re-introduce some natural room verb??

On another note is the Q3 the only thing you used for audio in that? Or were you running mics through a board then into the Q3

The audio is straight from the Q3's internal mic's. I've never linked to external mic's via a board.

As for improving the sound in the room by adding reflective surfaces - sure, that would be an easy fix, but it isn't our space, & doing that as a temporary fix on a weekly basis would be a PITA. The other band members are happy (except for the crappy house PA), so I'll just have to suck it up :(

Quote:

Originally Posted by B-squared

Haha, that is weird! I'm not sure if the tape made it worse or not, but I have to admit, that is about as dead a room as I've ever come across. I hope you can get into a more "music-friendly" space soon, Andy. Maybe they could use that room as a library.

The limitations of the recorder don't help (Q3's roll off the bottom end quite severely), but yes, it really is that dead. All this said, it makes gigging that much more pleasurable as the drums are set free to sing :)

The one I'm thinking of had the walls and ceiling lined with thick foam - it felt like we were in a sonically claustrophobic cell.

Yes Grea, that's exactly what this is like. There's a layer of foam behind the carpet - ack. Actually, thinking about it, Duncan has been to one of our practices in this room, so he'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

Yes Grea, that's exactly what this is like. There's a layer of foam behind the carpet - ack. Actually, thinking about it, Duncan has been to one of our practices in this room, so he'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

It is very dead indeed, although 'in the room' there is clarity to everything there isn't any tone to speak of.

I was just glad that it wasn't too reflective in that space because it would have been incredibly loud. A slightly larger room with more reflection would be ideal but in Herefordshire? Good luck.

My heart, and my ears, go out to you man! I too have had many a disappointing night in awful-sounding rehearsal spaces. The only difference is that my drums have never been half as nice as yours, so I think it must be much worse for you. It's sort of like having a Ferarri and only being able to drive it in a school zone.

I have used this type of space man times before, and in my experience it is at least marginally better with this sort of heavy duty muffling. When I've played in small rooms with little to no muffling the sound and reflections were just overwhelming to me, and I would back off a lot. In the heavily muffled spaces I can at least hit the drums the way I normally would. Anyone else have experience with these types of rooms?

My heart, and my ears, go out to you man! I too have had many a disappointing night in awful-sounding rehearsal spaces. The only difference is that my drums have never been half as nice as yours, so I think it must be much worse for you. It's sort of like having a Ferarri and only being able to drive it in a school zone.

I have used this type of space man times before, and in my experience it is at least marginally better with this sort of heavy duty muffling. When I've played in small rooms with little to no muffling the sound and reflections were just overwhelming to me, and I would back off a lot. In the heavily muffled spaces I can at least hit the drums the way I normally would. Anyone else have experience with these types of rooms?

Too true! Small rooms with no "muffling" are just as bad. Somewhere in a middle happy space would be perfect, but hey, we're not exactly a big budget band :(